I remember when I was approached with the offer to attend Lucha VaVoom (a quarterly lucha-style show with insane over-the-top marketing and a growing cult following) a couple of months ago by my good friend Captain Crank. Honestly, I was already sold as soon as he said the words “underground-style luchador wrestling.” I was even MORE sold when he said there were burlesque-style striptease performances. The deal was sealed when he told me about midgets, chicken wrestlers, and chicken midgets. SOLD. I’M SO THERE.

But I didn’t move on researching further into the event. Instead, I agreed excitedly and went to sleep the next few nights with dreams of wrestling chickens and gorgeous pasty-wearing pole dancers. But again, no concrete moves made.

But no more than a few days later did I get my sign. I received an email to my LAMB inbox about none other than Lucha VaVoom.

“LUCHA VaVOOM–the gloriously unhinged mix of Mexican-style lucha libre wrestling, traditional burlesque and blow-by-blow comedic commentary–will blur the lines between reality and fantasy this Halloween with two shows at the Mayan Theatre in downtown Los Angeles”

With a description like that, COSMICALLY serendipitous timing, a highly favorable review from Cpt. Crank, (who is someone that I find to be MOST credible in all things ridiculous), a special Halloween edition show, and a perfectly timed birthday occasion, it was definitely written in the stars for me to catch this show with 30 of my closest friends.

By the way, thank you all so much for coming out. To be lucky is one thing, but to truly FEEL lucky is another. /sappyproverb

So we revved up and prepared to have our minds kicked, body slammed, and caressed right into the concrete floor of the Mayan Theatre.

Lucha Vavoom, from start to finish is one of those things that could only be founded in Los Angeles. Multi-faceted and multi-lingual, the show kicked off with a line FULL of eager attendees by the 7pm door open time. Being the Halloween special show, half the crowd was dressed up in Halloween garb and many in lucha masks.

Even before the show began, the air was festive and full of life. As soon as we walked in, the distinctive counter-culture vibe continued, but was accompanied by the beautiful showtime sheen of the historic Mayan Theatre. The room was decked out in blood-red lighting with the stage awash in haunting cool hues. The bars were full service, and the patrons trickled in excitedly.

The show started beautifully with an amazing pole routine that kicked gravity in the face with 9-inch stilettos. This was followed immediately by a tag-team match that highlighted Dirty Sanchez, the poo-slinging protagonist with a pluto-sized beer belly, and this is where I was amazed. From watching the videos, I figured Dirty Sanchez to be one of the more notable protagonists. It was wild to me that they’d pull out their big guns so fast. Honestly, how could things get better than DIRTY SANCHEZ? But they did. OH DID THEY.

With the inclusion of over-the-top entrances, muscular midgets, bouncing mammaries, confetti-shooting phalluses, drag queens, a midget chicken wrestler dancing to hard techno music, etc., etc. (don’t want to give it all away), the event was a two more hours of non-stop action, comedy, cheering, and jeering.

And this is where I really enjoyed Lucha VaVoom the most. Just the sheer amount of audience participation was overwhelming. From the girl who showed up in a $200 rave-ready skunk costume, to the voodoo doll-wielding zombie chick with an unzipped face, there was just an astronomical amount of participation that really helped to maintain an incredible level of energy. Even with the ridiculous hecklers and the guy who got ejected for actually trying to start a fight with the wrestlers, every single component of Lucha VaVoom was an EXPERIENCE.

And THIS is where I found the most value of the evening. The event felt over-the-top and ridiculous, but at the same time, it was polished and well produced. It stuck to its traditional roots but poked fun at the Hollywood glitz and glamor. It was a hodgepodge of the bizarre, heavily romanticized, and dangerously hilarious. Like living in LA. In my honest opinion, there’s just no other city in the world that could have spawned this wonderful creation.

My final thought: Any event where the expensive VIP guests are the FIRST to be tossed aside by security guards when luchas go flying gets an A+++ in my book. Like literally, they grabbed people’s shoulders and physically shoved people and chairs out of the way unapologetically.

“I pay VIP to get a more fulfilling experience, not to be constrained like a veal cow.”

Life changing night for sure. Check out this video of L’il Chickens and The Ramierz Chickens kicking some ass under the black light. Best. Song. Ever.